Psalms 44
1 For the choirmaster. A Maskil of the sons of Korah. We have heard with our ears, O God; our fathers have told us the work You did in their days, in the days of old.
For the music director. A psalm (maskil) of the sons of Korah. God, we have heard with our own ears—our forefathers have told us—all you did in their times, long ago.
2 With Your hand You drove out the nations and planted our fathers there; You crushed the peoples and cast them out.
Through your power you drove out the other nations so you could settle our ancestors there; you defeated the nations and you sent our ancestors to occupy the land.
3 For it was not by their sword that they took the land; their arm did not bring them victory. It was by Your right hand, Your arm, and the light of Your face, because You favored them.
They did not conquer the land using their swords; it was not through their own strength that the victory was won—it was by your strength, your power, and your presence with them, because you loved them.
4 You are my King, O God, who ordains victories for Jacob.
God, you are my King; command victories for Jacob!
5 Through You we repel our foes; through Your name we trample our enemies.
Only through you can we repel our enemies; only in your name can we defeat our opponents.
6 For I do not trust in my bow, nor does my sword save me.
I do not trust my bow; I do not have confidence in my sword to save me.
7 For You save us from our enemies; You put those who hate us to shame.
You are the one who saves us from our enemies; you defeat those who hate us.
8 In God we have boasted all day long, and Your name we will praise forever.
God, we proudly thank you all day long, and praise your name forever. (Selah)
9 But You have rejected and humbled us; You no longer go forth with our armies.
But now you have rejected and disgraced us; you no longer accompany our armies.
10 You have made us retreat from the foe, and those who hate us have plundered us.
You made us run from our enemies, and those who hate us have taken whatever they wanted.
11 You have given us up as sheep to be devoured; You have scattered us among the nations.
You have handed us over like sheep to be slaughtered; you have scattered us among the other nations.
12 You sell Your people for nothing; no profit do You gain from their sale.
You have sold your own people for next to nothing, making no profit on the sale.
13 You have made us a reproach to our neighbors, a mockery and derision to those around us.
You have made a mockery of us before our neighbors, we are ridiculed and laughed at by those around us.
14 You have made us a byword among the nations, a laughingstock among the peoples.
You have made us a joke to the other nations; they scornfully shake their heads at us.
15 All day long my disgrace is before me, and shame has covered my face,
We are humiliated all day long; we hold our heads in shame,
16 at the voice of the scorner and reviler, because of the enemy, bent on revenge.
because of all the insults from the people mocking us, because our vengeful enemies are right in front of us.
17 All this has come upon us, though we have not forgotten You or betrayed Your covenant.
All this has happened to us even though we didn't forget you; we haven't been unfaithful to the promises we made to you.
18 Our hearts have not turned back; our steps have not strayed from Your path.
We have not turned away from you, not in thought, nor in action.
19 But You have crushed us in the lair of jackals; You have covered us with deepest darkness.
Even so, you crushed us, and made us into a jackal's den. You have covered us with the darkness of death.
20 If we had forgotten the name of our God or spread out our hands to a foreign god,
If we had forgotten the name of our God, or worshiped other gods,
21 would not God have discovered, since He knows the secrets of the heart?
wouldn't God have been aware of this, because he knows everyone's thoughts?
22 Yet for Your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.
But because of you we are killed all day long; we're considered just sheep to be slaughtered.
23 Wake up, O Lord! Why are You sleeping? Arise! Do not reject us forever.
Lord, wake up! Why are you sleeping? Get up! Don't turn your back on us forever!
24 Why do You hide Your face and forget our affliction and oppression?
Why do you look away from us and take no notice of our suffering and misery?
25 For our soul has sunk to the dust; our bodies cling to the earth.
We lie ruined in the dust, our bodies face down in the dirt.
26 Rise up; be our help! Redeem us on account of Your loving devotion.
Stand up! Come and help us! Save us because of your trustworthy love!
